The sun leaked through Maria’s windows, hitting squarely upon the girl’s eyes. Sunday morning had come, and with it the day of the Grand Ball was upon her. With a steady movement Maria raised herself off the bed and made sure not to step on any of her traps which were laid out.

“Good morning Mistress, I have prepared your clothing.” Her Maid and trusted confidant Melody said while presenting her Purple Haired Master with a set of tasteful black and white clothing.

“Thank you very much Melody, just hand it here so I may put it on.”

Most women of Nobility would be stereotyped as not even being able to put any clothing on by themselves through greater ignorance. However that was clearly wrong, as even a child could put on a simple tunic. Most of them tried to wear things that they could not easily put on themselves, thus requiring help. However Maria did not really care about gaudy clothing and the like, because she knew for sure that she looked good in anything.

Such confidence allowed of course more comfortable clothing available.

“I will be cleaning and doing finishing touches on your dress for tonight while you are out Mistress. Please be back when the sun starts descending so we can get your things on.”

“Good, though I thought such a dress was perfect already?”

“Well, there are some stitching still sticking out here and there.” Melody claimed while shaking her head, “Oh yes, can you meet me in the Servant’s Quarters at that time?”

“Too dangerous to put the dress on in here I assume?”

“Indeed Mistress.”

Maria gave an understanding nod as she finally got the simple dress fashioned on, “I have been meaning to ask, what is the status on acquiring a kitten? It's been a few days, so you surely have made progress.”

“Oh that? Uh,” Melody gave a drawn out tone, “Well I have found it advised that you pick one up from wherever you shall stay. That way its more accommodating to the weather.”

“Well, we are not ready for it yet.” Maria admitted while making her way out the door, “I shall see you later than Melody.”

“Nn, have a good time at the Service!”

“I will.”

>Sit next to Albert, since he is very close to being Maria’s lover
>Be Next to Bon, so Maria can find out about yesterday
>Sit alone, for that is the pious thing to do!

>>4409478
>Be Next to Bon, so Maria can find out about yesterday
Gotta know how things went for him. btw OP you forgot to link the new thread in the old one

>>4409478
>>Be Next to Bon, so Maria can find out about yesterday

>>4409478
>>Be Next to Bon, so Maria can find out about yesterday

>>4409478
>Sit alone, for that is the pious thing to do!
As tempting as Bon is, I wanna buff that faith up and Bon should be comfortable enough with us to come over if he has something to say.

Do you guys think we should discuss some of the longer term plans in the previous thread so that QM doesn't get mixed up or overwhelmed by us talking a bunch in the middle of a vote?

Last Thread
>>4387149

All other Thread:
http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive.html?tags=otomeqm

>>4409478
>Be Next to Bon, so Maria can find out about yesterday

>>4409478
>Be Next to Bon, so Maria can find out about yesterday

>>4409603
I understand that you have editing privileges as a QM. I figured I should let you know.

>>4409478
>Be Next to Bon, so Maria can find out about yesterday
It isn't unpious to be by brother.
Kinda wish in retrospect the healing potion is real, just spiced to all hell. Lot more coverage that way.

>>4409478
>>Sit next to Albert, since he is very close to being Maria’s lover

>>4409478
>Sit alone, for that is the pious thing to do!

>>4409478
>Be Next to Bon, so Maria can find out about yesterday

>>4409478
>Be Next to Bon, so Maria can find out about yesterday

>>4409478
>Sit alone, for that is the pious thing to do!

>>4409531
Sitting Next to Bon
>>4409531
>>4409569
>>4409589
>>4409615
>>4409616
>>4409642
>>4409759
>>4409786

Next to Albert
>>4409691

Alone
>>4409598
>>4409714
>>4409808

>>4409621
Editing Privileges? I got honestly no idea what you are talking about, since here on 4chan whatever you post is either deleted ASAP or stays.

Not a vote

We need a checklist of things we need to do so we can make Maria life less miserable. Some of these are....

>Obtain a cat and train to prey the bird
>Ward off any suspicion about us
>Make Ford pay from his transgressions
>Make us saint first before Chloe
>Live a life free from death flags and have 12 kids from our choose husbando

Of course just as predicted, the skies above were quite clear with only the occasional fluffy cloud blocking the way. Such weather was accommodating for almost everyone as fall was never a good time for rain.

As Maria approached the Cathedral that stood domanantly against the Academy’s walls, she quickly noticed all the people going around it. Indeed it was most likely the day lovers would take all of their dates so that they could receive their blessing together. It can easily be seen as romantic to many people, but Maria herself always felt that going to Mass was just her duty.

Maybe that was just a thought brought up by Maria’s faith in the Lord above.

As she walked into the more crowded place, her eyes guided around before quickly setting sights on a spot off to the side. Sitting there was Bon with a girl who was looking to be a little more tense than she should be.

So Maria approached the two, “Hey there Bon, it seems you met Fein Kers without me.”

“Hmm, of Maria! I… should have expected you to be here.” Bon answered while scatching the back of his head.

“So what is up with your girl?” Maria laughed while taking a seat.

“M-Maria I’m a little, uh, hehe.” Kers looked over with a little wear on her face, “I’m not used to being out with this big of a crowd. I should have remembered it would get this crowded today.”

“Yeah, I guess thats a little hindsight right?” Bon joked.

“Yes but I’m the one who suggested coming here...” She murmured with a slight bit of fear, “It would have been so romantic but by the Lord!”

Maria could not help but laugh a little, “Is that so, well maybe you should grab onto my brother for comfort~”

“Wait wha-”

“Oh, your right!” And within a moment the girl was latched upon Bon, with quite the… unusual grip. For any case Bon was not going to make her let go, since his face was beet red and likely his brain has stopped functioning.

>Listen intently to the Sermon being given *Makes me write it out, otherwise summery*
>Find out what the two did yesterday
>Talk about their plans for the coming afternoon
>Other

>>4409919
>Listen intently to the Sermon being given *Makes me write it out, otherwise summery*
Summery

Also is it important? Seems like it do.

Best just say we're happy they like each other and happy they're happy. No need to pry their private life unless they offer.

>>4409919
>Listen intently to the Sermon being given *Makes me write it out, otherwise summary*
We can always ask afterwards if we really need to.

>>4409919
>>Listen intently to the Sermon being given *Makes me write it out, otherwise summery*
Summary version

>>4409919
>Listen intently to the Sermon being given *Makes me write it out, otherwise summery*
If it's important, otherwhise I'm ok with a summery

>>4409919
>Listen intently to the Sermon being given *Makes me write it out, otherwise summery*
Our life is at stake here. Let's take church at least a little seriously.

>>4409919
>Talk about their plans for the coming afternoon

>>4409919
>Find out what the two did yesterday

>>4409919
>Find out what the two did yesterday

>>4409919
>Talk about their plans for the coming afternoon
Good comms is key

>>4409919
>Listen intently to the Sermon being given *summary*

>>4409919
>>Listen intently to the Sermon being given *Makes me write it out, otherwise summery*

Can't be a Saintess if we don't know God's Will, right?

>>4409919
>Find out what the two did yesterday

>>4409919
>>Listen intently to the Sermon being given *Makes me write it out*

>>4409919
>>Listen intently to the Sermon being given *summary*

>>4409919
>Listen intently to the Sermon being given *Makes me write it out, otherwise summery*
I want to see how hard you can go.

Sermon it is...

The numerous voices that sounded themselves all around the Cathedral slowly but surely died down as the Headmaster of the school came out. Unlike other times where he had been wearing simple black robes, now he was wearing white ones with a distinct red ribbon around his neck. Such was the reward for being promoted to a Cardinal of the Church.

“Welcome my Children, future rulers of men across the Lord’s lands. Thank you all for coming today on such a special occasion.” He announced while making a motion of his hand, “Today I am aware many come with their lovers and friends, all seeking the Lord’s blessing for the coming night. In such a case, I am more than willing to give it to you.”

Soon the man made a motion with his hands, “However we must all give our Prayers to the Lord, for blessing us with a bountiful harvest not seen in years!”

[Expression Failed]

And with that everyone around began to sing, and out of everyone Maria was down on the lower tier. Indeed the only reason she was not the worst was because she came to Church almost every single Sunday to pay tribute to the Lord. However as she sung one voice seemed to stick out among the rest.

Now standing near the front was Chloe with Lucien next to her, singing to her heart’s content like the angel she is. Indeed her voice seemed to roar across the Cathedral with Angelic might, but soon that ended as soon as the organ stopped at the end of the song.

“I am sure today the songs of the Lord’s Prayer has gripped his attention towards us. A powerful ire preparing to give the coming event his blessing. While the Harvest Festivities were not hos at one point, our belief in him shall make the his own.”

The Headmaster seemed to finally be hitting his groove, “In such a time, remember Children of the Lord, that infidelity is not just a sin but something to be wary of. In the Great Tome of our History, Eckheart’s Kingdom fell from one of his own children born from the belly of a simple bar wench.”

The man nodded to himself with a serious expression now forming, “Such acts may also incur those who walked this land before the Lord. Such acts is what they ordered their followers to commit, and as such if you do it you too shall be theirs.”

A wave of fear went through the room as Maria heard those words. Indeed, demons were something she could not abide in allowing, so her schemes were already done way before the event started.

The rest of the event was filled with the message, invoking similar stories along with ones about how true love saved a Kingdom. Everyone sang and enjoyed their time, to which Maria tried her best everytime even if she was shit at it.

And like that the event was over.

>Hang out with Bon and Kers for a little while longer.
>Go see Albert who is surely nearby
>Talk to the Bishop about his message today

>>4410444
>Hang out with Bon and Kers for a little while longer.
I need to see where this is going.

>>4410444
>Go see Albert who is surely nearby
Lol we can’t sing

>>4410444
>Hang out with Bon and Kers for a little while longer.

>>4410444
How long until the dance? I kinda want to get the gossip girls to cram an entire week's worth of it on us and see how the date went.

>>4410444
>Hang out with Bon and Kers for a little while longer.

Bro you better not stick dick in her till you married... or else

>>4410444
>Go see Albert who is surely nearby
We gotta increase expression if we have the opportunity, since it’s also useful if we need to pretending to be someone else

>>4410444
QM question what skill is connected to dance?

>>4409895
I remember a few years ago a QM mentioned QMs could and they actually did edit their posts on occasion. The OP might be an exception to that.

>>4410444
>Go see Albert who is surely nearby

>>4410489
That’s never been a thing. OPs only get to do some cool things with bbcodes.

>>4410444
>Hang out with Bon and Kers for a little while longer
I really wanna see how they're getting along. The fact they're sitting together is a good sign... (come on Bon get us the North's armies)

>>4410456
>Sunday morning had come, and with it the day of the Grand Ball was upon her
Ball is today.

>>4410511
I meant in terms of hours. We and the gossip girls need time to put on our dresses and get picked up by our dates, but there has to be time to tea before the dance, right?

>>4410444
>Hang out with Bon and Kers for a little while longer.
Our expression is terrible and needs to be improved asap

>>4410444
>Hang out with Bon and Kers for a little while longer.

>>4410444
>Go see Albert who is surely nearby

>>4410444
>Go see Albert who is surely nearby

Hang out with the bro
>>4410448
>>4410455
>>4410466
>>4410511
>>4410584
>>4410602

Albert oh Albert
>>4410452
>>4410470
>>4410497
>>4410861
>>4410871

Alright, hanging out with the bro!

Not a vote
>>4409903
I suspect that Chloe might have figured out she was being dumb from the etiquette classes and that's why she was being more upfront with us at the dress shop instead of screaming about how we're mean.

Current goals I can vaguely recall(minus the stuff mentioned there.)

1. Find a dragon--> Some anon mentioned wanting to become a dragonrider. I say we go the St Martha vs the Tarrasque route entirely for the sake of comedy and/or intimidate it with Royal demeanor..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T4sVmnfz9Wk

2. Microscope/telescope invention after we check Albert's glasses to see if the glass quality is enough to make them. It might even already exist since Otome glasses would be higher quality than they should be at thi time period.

3. Use Microscope for germ theory and to study how potions(magic?) work at a microscopic level.
Teach germ theory to enterprising young doctors not yet experienced enough to be twats who won't listen to us and carry on (secret) research after we become their patron.
Use the medicine advances we spur to make our armies survivability rise

4.Misc other advances to make us too useful to be killed off or excommunicated

5.Make more capitol for our expensive ideas.Now that I think of it, if they know the weather a year in advance, you can make an equation for calculating grain/etc futures. If we can roughly reverse engineer the pattern you can make a cheat sheet for investments over the course of years. The weather is surprisingly powerful in its influence. Even just having a sunny day raises economic productivity in our world simply because we aren't depressed by the gloomy rain.

6. Invent a printing press for spreading the otome novels?

7. Bandit (ninja) training or expansion of their mailing services to make them a useful spy unit during wartime. Also maybe a little memorial for the Bandits that died fighting the demon cultists.

8. Secure our trade route

9.Improve life of average citizen to cultivate LOYALTY

10. See what else Valor has been publishing about us

11. Invent the assembly line

12. Most important of all
>Get Elric to sing Billie Jean at some point.

>>4411061
>Getting Elric to sing Billie Jean
I was going to say Thriller but damn he is kinda like Micheal Jackson except the touching kids part.

“May the Lord bless you all tonight.” The Cardinal announced while bowing his head to the Lord above, “Stay safe and keep your wits about you.”

And like that the man left with the last few songs of the Organ announcing it. The Sermon now being over, a good amount of people who were all about the place began to leave for their after activities. That went for the three as well, as soon enough they had escaped from the crowds for a more relaxed area of the courtyard.

“So has infidelity always been a problem or something?” Maria asked her companion with a small inquiry.

“Kinda?” Bon admitted while scratching the back of his head, “I heard about a few Counts and Barons getting caught up in it.”

“Yeah that’s true. A bunch of idiots they were, atleast they could do it properly.” Kers said with a shaking of her head, “Couldn’t they realize there is much more to love than just fucking eachother senseless? A grand romantic night with wine and a soft kiss is good enough for me~”

Maria analysed how Kers was not being shoved off by Bon as an interesting development, “So how did yesterday go? Sorry for ghosting the two of you like that.” Maria of course held in the fact she thought it was a better idea for that.

“Oh it was lovely, and scary too!” Kers went off without holding back, “I instantly knew the man was your brother from his handsome looks, but I could not bring myself to come even close to him! But then, he approached me in such a handsome stride I-”

“Kers, can you, uh, please calm it down a little.” Bon called out with a blushing face, “I was lucky enough to have noticed you in the first place. I just guessed from how you were acting that you were Maria’s friend.”

Hearing that Maria could not help but ponder for a moment, since those words were more or less saying that Maria might be weird. You know, since Fein Kers was by all definitions freaking weird. Maria however is simply eccentric and tactful, indeed someone like her was a step above the rest.

“Well I am glad that it worked out,” Maria claimed before nodding to herself. She did wonder about the future of this though, since she wondered how Bon would react to this constant praise and Kers to, well, having someone to constantly talk to.

>Invite them to go to a restaurant as Maria will with Albert and Hopefully Elric
>Maria should head over to meet with Albert alone, Maria has kept him waiting long enough
>See how the gossip girls were doing, since one of them did technically get dumped by the Prince

>>4411080
>Maria should head over to meet with Albert alone, Maria has kept him waiting long enough

>>4411080
>>Maria should head over to meet with Albert alone, Maria has kept him waiting long enough
Having Kers be in the proximity of Elric might be a little too much for her at this point. Plus I want her and Bon to bond some more.

>>4411080
>>See how the gossip girls were doing, since one of them did technically get dumped by the Prince

We need:
1. To make sure our friend circle doesn't tear itself apart.

2. To see if the second date improved (maybe at least explain why it was so awkward to make it seem less awful if they didn't loosen up)

3. An entire week's worth of gossip before the party so that we don't say something dumb during small talk. We are completely out of the loop and don't know why there isn't a massive brothel scandal going around the school.

4. It's been too long since we had a good talk.

>>4411080
>Maria should head over to meet with Albert alone, Maria has kept him waiting long enough

>>4411081
This is so completely random and off topic

>>4411080
>See how the gossip girls were doing, since one of them did technically get dumped by the Prince
Best to nip any bad feelings in the bud or direct them somewhere where they won't hurt us.

>>4411080
>>Maria should head over to meet with Albert alone, Maria has kept him waiting long enough

>>4411080
>Maria should head over to meet with Albert alone, Maria has kept him waiting long enough

>>4411080
>>Maria should head over to meet with Albert alone, Maria has kept him waiting long enough

>>4411080
>See how the gossip girls were doing, since one of them did technically get dumped by the Prince

>>4411080
>>Maria should head over to meet with Albert alone, Maria has kept him waiting long enough

>>4411080
>Maria should head over to meet with Albert alone, Maria has kept him waiting long enough

>>4411080
>Go to the gossip girls
I mean we can hang out with Albert before the ball starts

>>4411313
Today is a "romantic" day mang. We can check on friends, but we've already ignored him through the service. It isn't a nice dating thing to do.

Meeting Albert Alone
>>4411083
>>4411089
>>4411099
>>4411120
>>4411123
>>4411125
>>4411222
>>4411272

Gossip Girls
>>4411096
>>4411109
>>4411130
>>4411313

Time to go see our boy Albert!!

For those wondering Agility is the stat for Dancing.

>>4411426
We have friends we've been neglecting and a powderkeg situation. If we go to him we leave for damage control anyway. Making up for it after the dance with stargazing seems a better idea to me.
>>4411458
What a coincidence, I wanted to upgrade that, but do we even know dances that aren't from the Miaphate?

“Well, I hope you two have a nice day.” Maria called out while making her away from Bon, “Try your best to entertain Fein Kers before the Ball.”

“Wha?” Was about all Maria could hear as she dissolved once again into the crowd. However the crowd was more or less dwindling, so it was not very hard for her to navigate it.

So with a few steps here and there, she had not problem when she spotted a young man wearing a pair of spectacles looking a little depressed off to the side of the Gardens. Of course there was the temptation to scare him with her sneaking, but Maria would admit today would not be the best one to scare him on.

“Fufu, well there are you Albert.”

“Guh!” Even as she approached him from the front Albert gave a small jump, “Maria, please do not sneak up on me! You about gave me a heart attack.”

“I was not even trying to scare you though. Maybe your head was in the clouds for a little too long.” Maria took him by the hand and shinned a genuine smile, “I know, its because I did not sit next to you during the Sermon correct?”

“Am I that much of an open book to you?”

“Indeed you are, though it’s not a very bad thing.” She mused while poking him on the nose, “How about after we are done with the Ball we go out Stargazing or something? How about it?”

“I… would not be against it.” Albert answered with a smile, “Though what were you doing then?”

“Just sitting with my brother. I have been worried about him these last few days, but he seems to have finally started getting better as of recent times.”

“Really? Well that's good to hear.” Albert admitted while giving a sigh, “Family comes first, or at least what my Father says.”

“Coming from a man who’s gotten so many children, I find it hard to family wouldn’t come first.”

“Hehe, I guess you are right.” Albert admitted with a laugh shared by Maria.

>Head out on Horseback
>Head out for a picnic
>Go for a simple Walk
>Go Check up on Elric with Albert tagging along
>See if Albert has any suggestions on what to do
>Other, as I need ideas Anons!

>>4411468
Anons were acting like it's an important romantic day, ergo there must be minor festival stalls scattered about the marketplace.
>Go see some of the early festival stalls. We can't see them later tonight because of the dance.
Afterwards we check on the gossip girls. Albert should understand us being worried about a love triangle breaking up the friendship and how it might not be a good idea to flaunt a relationship right in front of them if the dates went bad. We don't want them doing something they'd regret just before the ball.

>>4411468
>Go for a simple Walk

>>4411468
>Go see some of the early festival stalls

>>4411468
>Go see some of the early festival stalls. We can't see them later tonight because of the dance.
this idea is good

>>4411468
>>Go Check up on Elric with Albert tagging along

>>4411468
>>Go Check up on Elric with Albert tagging along

>>4411476
Vote
Concur fully

>>4411468
>Head out on Horseback

>>4411468
>>Go see some of the early festival stalls. We can't see them later tonight because of the dance.

>>4411468
>head out on horseback

>>4411468
>See if Albert has any suggestions on what to do

>>4411468
>Go see some of the early festival stalls. We can't see them later tonight because of the dance.
I wanna check up on Elric, but if the first prince's camp is suspicious then hanging around with the second prince looks like a giant red flag.

...Also we totally didn't do much to sus out what Chloe's big plan to save Oskar was either huh. Calling she's probably gonna confront us at the ball but hopefully we've covered our tracks well enough

>>4411782
They're probably snooping around now since everyone is busy.

>>4411782
Yeah. We basically ignored every shot to sniff out things, but we did set a trap for if they're planning to break into our room for real evidence. I think we should just treat em like you shoud with the police, shut the hell up and say nothing as everything is a trick to make you look guilty. Let them just lay out the evidence on their own so that we can pick at it. They have no right to demand anything of you in the first place, just because Ford and the prince might decide to demand it of us with an authoritative voice does not mean we owe them anything and our cousin was right about there being no jurisdiction over us.
(I'd been thinking in the back of my mind that we need a body double and one certainly would be helpful for an alibi, but this isn't a society where you can backtrack a person's exact location for weeks/months. Our dates with Albert are entire sections of the day with no real alabi technically)

We can then frame the entire thing as a Ford vs us fight with Choe as his minion, congratulate him on his first volley, leave and proceed to sic his daddy on him.

The biggest problem is the existence of bootleg truth serum (we shoulda researched countermeasures and detection methods in our free time,) but security at the ball should be tight. Only drink from new bottles during the ball? Maybe eat now and don't eat the hors d'oeuvres at the ball unless we see them being directly taken from the same place as everyone else's? I really don't know the food arrangements at this thing or even if there are any.
Seriously. How did the fact that it was so easy to drug people with anything, let alone magical potions, not make us paranoid as shit.

Festival time!!!
>>4411476
>>4411485
>>4411511
>>4411552
>>4411743
>>4411782

Simple Walk
>>4411477

Check up on the Prince
>>4411531
>>4411534

Horseback Riding
>>4411727
>>4411767

Albert Suggestions
>>4411776

Alright, time to write a write-in!

“Oh, I wonder what it is that we will find?” Maria mused as they began to walk about the series of stall scattered about the small town.

“I’m a little curious too.” Albert had to admit while looking around himself, “I am seeing a lot more student walking around today.”

“And many more exotic Merchants too. I am sure they all can just smell the money rolling.”

Indeed the post Mass market was quite lively today. What else would one expect though, as many student with their lovers decided to travel through the streets to spend money on eachother. Honestly it was a Merchant’s dream to be sure.

“Hmm, though I am a little sad that I won’t be buying anymore jewelry.” Maria admitted while placing a single hand upon her necklace, “Still it was such a lively buy for sure.”

“Indeed, it looks great on you.” Albert announced with a smile, “Though now that I think about it, my brother said he might be-”

“Albert! There you are! Haha!” Both of their attentions were taken by a person who ran out of their stall and gave Albert a nice choke hold and rubbing on the neck, “You know I was wondering when you would come by. You can’t keep away from the money for that long!”

“Brother-! Please-! You are choking me!”

“Like I would stop when you are right next to such a pretty woman! Isn’t it my job to embarrass you?” He gave one more laugh before finally letting the boy go, “Fine fine, there you go.”

“Gah!” Albert exclaimed while staying on the ground for a little too long.

“Well time to introduce myself to your Girlfriend.” The rather larger man gave a bow, “Name is Thompson, third son of our family who is way too large.”

“Maria Louisa Regnia, Kingslayer and daughter of the Dragon at your service.” Maria said with a bow she herself gave.

“Damn he actually got a Noble girl too! You lucky ass bastard somehow getting a girl before me!” He laughed while Albert was slowly picking himself up from the ground.

>Sit back and watch the Siblings go at it
>Maria shall try her hardest to make Albert as embarrassed as she can
>Check out his wares
>Other

>>4411991
>Sit back and watch the Siblings go at it
We don't have enough living brothers to see this normally so we find it heartwarming. Maybe add in a little melancholy and reflect back on times with our brothers other than Bon. Then we tell them to cherish these moments etc etc blah bah. (trying not to be a mood killer here)

>>4411991
>Sit back and watch the Siblings go at it
>>4411994
Supporting this guy for our reasoning.

>>4411991
>Check out his wares

>>4411991
>Sit back and watch the Siblings go at it
>>4411994
Going with this thinking

>>4411991
>Sit back and watch the Siblings go at it

>>4411991
>Maria shall try her hardest to make Albert as embarrassed as she can

>>4411991
>Sit back and watch the Siblings go at it

>>4411991
>Sit back and watch the Siblings go at it

>>4411991
>Sit back and watch the Siblings go at it

>>4411994
Tfw roll not to cry

It is indeed sad...
>>4411994
>>4411997
>>4412009
>>4412030
>>4412092
>>4412097
>>4412107
>>4412335

Examine Wares
>>4412003

Embarrassment
>>4412087

You know, I did not realize how sad it was.

“C-come on get off of me!” Albert called out while trying his best to break the grip out of the bully’s grip.

“You know I have been wanting to do this for two years, and you are just going to take it from me?”

“You’re already doing it!”

“Ah, I guess you are right.” Thompson said while releasing his brother, “Always the realist arn’t you?”

“Being a realist has gotten me into the Academy without a dime out of our pockets.”

“And I am sure Father is thanking you immensely for it.”

Maria could not help but smile at the sight before her, something you would rarely see outside of a family setting. Maria kinda wondered what it would be like to have so many siblings, since here Albert had Lord knows how many. And chances are his Father was still trying to get more of them.

“Dane… Caine….” She could not help but mutter their names under her breath. She never really knew them in her early life because the two were always doing something. Such a state of affairs was not helped when the Miaphate attacked.

Would they welcome her just as jovially, give her a simply formal welcome, or something in between?

It did not matter now though, Maria avenged their deaths twice fold without issue.

“So, Maria you said?” Maria was brought out of her trance by a jovial call by the brother, “What made you like this fool enough to take his hand?”

“Come on Thompson, I-”

“No no, I really want to hear this. Hell I do not even have a wife, which I honestly should have by now.”

>Albert will stay by Maria’s side, no matter what problems arise
>His money is quite nice
>Can’t she just like a boy because he is cute?
>Other reasons
>Yeah, Maria shall not answer that

>>4412524
>Sorry Thompson, love doesn't have to make sense, although he is quite charming.

>>4412524
>"He's a smart young man and a cute one on top of that"

>>4412524
>>Can’t she just like a boy because he is cute?
>>Albert will stay by Maria’s side, no matter what problems arise

>>4412524
>We started as friends, who knows where we'll end up!

>>4412524
>>4412537
This

With luck we won't have a manipulative older brother force Albert into an arranged marriage to stop his rising political power.

>>4412524
>"He's a smart young man and a cute one on top of that"
But really it's most likely his ambitiousness combined with intelligence and cuteness.

>>4412524
>>"He's a smart young man and a cute one on top of that"

>>4412524
>Albert will stay by Maria’s side, no matter what problems arise

>>4412524
>"He's a smart young man and a cute one on top of that"

Just cute is all
>>4412534
>>4412537
>>4412552
>>4412567
>>4412632
>>4412714
>>4412793

Friends at first
>>4412559
>>4412724

“Well, if you are really looking for the reasons than…” Maria ponder for a moment
before growing quite the wicked smile, “Yes, he is quite smart for a man his age and quite cute on top of that. Does that satisfy you?”

“I can’t really say, lets look at the one whothe compliments are towards.” He called out before turning their attention to a now blushing Albert, “Yes, I say thats good enough.”

And like that he released Albert back to Maria, “Now then, since you are my Brother’s date I can’t have you go away without a gift. Come over to my stall.”

Curiosity was getting the better of Maria, and so she walked over with Albert barely behind to an odd looking stall. If you were to describe exotic goods, those were exactly what Maria was seeing before herself. From what looked to be beast hides to spices, crates of wooden carvings and Porcelain, it was quite the find.

“Well, this is my selection. Though I got a few special things I may have you look at.” He announced while bringing out a few things before Maria.

The first she noticed was a pair of golden bracelets, “These are bracelets coming from far south of here, where goldsmithing was rumored to have first been invented. I simply took them since the markings upon them are something I have never really seen before.”

Looking them over, Maria could not help but admit that was the truth. It looked as if there were dozens of orderly rivets within it. Indeed, quite a piece of work but honestly she wondered what else he had in store.

“And here is the Never Wilting Flower of Hiltan.” He announced while bringing forward a singular red flower before Maria, “Heard that object came from the East, where men would live on the highest mountains.”

“I take it you savvy yourself as quite the traveler and collector?”

“Indeed you are right.” Thompson admitted with a small chuckle, “I can’t really help it, since my little brother here tends to buy from me and is the only time I hear from him.”

“S-sorry about that. Theres just too many people to send letters to.”

“Indeed, I can see that as a good case.” He laughed before bringing out another item before them, “Alright, last suggestion. This here is an old book from times before even the Empire. While I can’t really make much sense of it, you two have access to the Academy’s archives. Maybe you two can make sense of it.”

Indeed what be brought out looked to be an old as hell book. Looking over it, she wondered how such a book stayed in such good condition. Maybe if she was curious enough, she could crack whatever secrets it held.

>The Bracelets
>An everlasting flower
>The old tome
>Another item, off in another pile *Write in*

>>4412990
>The Bracelets
Could be used to hide poison

>>4412990
>The old tome

>>4412990
The flower sounds like an ingredient for an immortality/youth potion to me. Or realy great for medical research in a few centuries.
>The old tome
We really should have had a look in the off chance that any of the writings were familiar, BUT we now have an excuse for isekai knowledge, so I think this is e best investment.

>>4412990
>The old tome

>>4412990
>The old tome

>>4412990
>An everlasting flower

>>4412990
>An everlasting flower

>>4412990
>>An everlasting flower
I'm sure it has its purpose

>>4412990
>tfw the bracelets act as translator to the book and the flower is the last ingredient to the recipe that was mentioned in the book.
>All of them. It may hurt Maria purse but it would greatly benefit in the future.

>>4412990
>The old tome

>>4412990
>The old tome

>>4412990
>An everlasting flower

>>4412990
>An everlasting flower

>>4412990
>The old tome
From before even the empire? If we crack it who knows what's in there

>>4413220
It's always the mystery box innit

>>4413225
Considering the last old book we read told us the crown prince of the empire was a failed isekai experiment, I'm not gonna say no to acquiring any more.

Though the flower is interesting (and pretty) so I wouldn't mind if that won out.

>>4412990
>The Bracelets
shiny pretty

>>4413093
Can we take one as gift and buy the rest lol?

>>4413225
Technically they're all a mystery box. For all we know the bracelet (or anything else) has a stat buff.

Now that i've had time to sleep on my old decision I do find that the everything suspiciously sounds like it's a gift for Chloe in a game event. Perhaps we should buy the flower (or everything else?) out of spite so that Chloe can't have it if we search our memories and find out that it is?

Bracelets
>>4412998
>>4413242

The Old Tome
>>4413006
>>4413020
>>4413034
>>4413059
>>4413115
>>4413134
>>4413220

Everlasting Flower
>>4413068
>>4413081
>>4413089
>>4413172
>>4413212

Fuck it
>>4413093

Old Tome it is!

Maria looked over the items that were presented to her and thought about it for a moment. Indeed each item seemed odd, the possibility of them holding some kind of ability obvious. However she needed to pick one, or risk spending the rest of her funds kicking at dust.

So she went for something that was likely going to give her a nice chance at learning, “I think the Tome would be me well. Of course its not romantic, but I am sure we could learn a little bit more together.”

The brother to Albert gave a hearty laugh, “Hey Albert, hear that? She’s gotta be a keeper, at least for a silly kid like you.”

And like that he pushed the book forward into Maria’s hands, “IF you ever do get that translated, be sure to tell me what is it you discover within it.”

“I will try.” She admitted before stuffing it into her bag.

“Well with that done I think its time for you all to get moving.” Thompson announced while making a motion with his hand, “Go now, and don’t get yourselves in trouble.”

So they did as they were told and left, Maria giving him a wave while Albert did the same along with a relieved sigh.

“You got an odd brother, but lovely one.” Maria told the poor man as they walked through the streets.

“Yeah, you're right there.”

“Now I can’t help but wonder if each of your other siblings are like that?” Maria claimed with a playful poke, “Surely you cannot have a family of eccentric explorers and keep a business running.”

“Yeah, you are right there. Though my Father has not set the standard very high himself if I gotta be honest.”

“Hmm, you are right there. There is a point in just having a fun time in the bedroom and purposefully turning your wife and any other woman you meet into an baby maker.” Of course her reply caused Albert to grow all sort of crimson shades, but Maria ignored it for the high noon sun.

>Continue Exploring the Fair
>See if any of their friends are walking about
>Go find secluded place to simply talk
>Check up on Maria’s mailmen and see if she has any mail
>Other events

>>4413542
>>See if any of their friends are walking about

>>4413542
>>See if any of their friends are walking about

>>4413542
>Continue Exploring the Fair

>>4413542
>See if any of their friends are walking about

>>4413542
>Go find secluded place to simply talk

>>4413542
>Continue Exploring the Fair

>>4413542
>>Check up on Maria’s mailmen and see if she has any mail

>>4413542
>See if any of their friends are walking about

>>4413542
>See if any of their friends are walking about

Hold on, we have to check our mailbox personally if it's not a direct delivery?
>>4413542
>See if any of their friends are walking about
Gotta make sure to notice if our friend is sulking in her room all day.
>Check up on Maria’s mailmen and see if she has any mail
Tease Albert by saying we must check on if he sent us any passionate love letters.

Time for Friends
>>4413550
>>4413555
>>4413557
>>4413675
>>4413758
>>4413939

General Exploration
>>4413556
>>4413619

Simple Talk
>>4413582

Mail Time!!
>>4413668

Alright, Time for Friends!!

So they walked for a little bit longer, Maria and Albert enjoying the simple commerce of man. Indeed it is a beautiful sight, the amount of money traveling from one person to another. Maria can only wish for the day she is able to make this happen in her own realm. By what means, well War was definitely on the Agenda.

However soon Maria spotted something in the crowd, “Hmm, I wonder who that blond haired person is?”

“Who are you- oh! That would be Prince Elric.”

Probably hearing his name, said prince looked around along with the other two who were with him. Minor looks of surprise were exchanged between the two groups before they approached.

“Hehe, well there you two are! We were wondering where you went.” Laughed Matheo as they finally met up in the middle.

“Well we were not trying to hide, you are simply not observant.” Maria said with a counter.

“It seems Elizabeth’s guess that you two would be at the markets would be accurate.” Elric mentioned with a soft smile.

“Really?” Albert mentioned with a raised brow.

“I mean, I just knew thats where we might find Maria.” Elizabeth admitted while gaining a minor blush about herself.

“Interesting, maybe there was a reason Erica was friends with you after all.” Maria popped in with a smile, “It seems you have somehow gotten two men following you then!”

Maria gave a little laugh at her dumb joke, while Albert followed probably because he realized it too. It only took a few moments however for the two subjects of the matter to realize what Maria meant, and quickly did they grow red.

“P-Please don’t say things like that! I am only acting as Erlic’s partner for the dance!” Elizabeth said without much hesitation. Innocent sounding, though it also came from a person who Maria had modest respect for. Then again, Elric probably liked the innocent girls more because of the Otome Game.

>Have everyone go get something to eat!
>Lets do an activity! IDK what, but they should do something
>Eh, wondering as a group with no aim isn’t that bad.

>>4414229
>Eh, wondering as a group with no aim isn’t that bad.

>>4414229
>Eh, wondering as a group with no aim isn’t that bad.
Catch up with each other.

>>4414229
>Eh, wondering as a group with no aim isn’t that bad.
>Hint to Elric that Albert's brother has an eternal flower if he wants to get her a present.
A shame that we didn't get to make a Beauty and the Beast joke at the stall.

>>4414229
>Eh, wondering as a group with no aim isn’t that bad.
Did this turn into a festival episode?

>>4414229
>Lets do an activity! IDK what, but they should do something

>>4414229
>Lets do an activity! IDK what, but they should do something
Let's ride some horses

>>4414256
this sounds kind of good.
supporting!

>>4414266
There's a ball tonight of course it is!

>>4414229
>Lets do an activity! IDK what, but they should do something
Riding

>>4414229
>Lets do an activity!
>Hint to Elric that Albert's brother has an eternal flower if he wants to get her a present.

Just here wonderin'
>>4414237
>>4414244
>>4414256
>>4414268
>>4414287

Horses!
>>4414269
>>4414415
>>4414479

Alright, just wondering seems to have won.

>>4414599
It’s a tie bro, put >>4414268 in the wrong place

>>4414599
>>4414637

Oops, well I have already written half the damn update.

>>4414639
Seems I came around late, oh well

>>4414639
It's still fine. Wondering still won, you just missed >>4414266

File: 0840c665-8570-4c8a-97e3-b(...).jpg (176 KB, 500x689)

176 KB JPG

Without much else to do they began to wonder about the place, each making their own stops at stalls to pick up with their own items and take in the sights. For Elric, he went ahead and purchased a small necklace for Elizabeth while Matheo just grabbed himself a large loaf of bread. Indeed it was a romantic buy, just for himself of course.

Soon enough though they noticed a small act being played in the busy streets, as a man began to juggle a large amount of objects into the air. Honestly Maria had to admit the amount of objects being thrown was kinda insane, counting maybe ten objects at a time.

“Hey, Albert, is such a sight normal?” Maria asked while leaning towards him.

“I have heard of a few jesters doing this kind of act, though those men have reached upwards of Twenty.”

“That’s… quite a lot.”

“Indeed it is.”

Soon enough, after what seemed to have been a minute of the man performing he finally collected all the balls and gave a courteous bow, “Thank you all for coming to my act, however I am not just a simple jester with only one trick. No, I am a jester who knows that a crowd doing nothing is one who is not engaged! So I devised a little game.”

Maria watched as the man ripped off the cloak behind him to reveal a large stall, enough to have belonged in the modern age. What he revealed was a series of cans all stacked upon each other.

“My game is simple, take down the cans that stand upon the table with your might. Do not let the simplicity fool you however. Its one gold an entry, though I ask that for Couples that I limit the attempt to just one of you.” And with that he grew a wicked smile while bringing out a small golden bottle, “The winner shall receive this item, a Bottle of Luck. For taking this bottle will surely cause one to have a fabulous night.”

[Intrigue Success]

Maria studied the man for just a moment, the feeling about him was off. His eyes were sharp and calculating, however they were not of a Charlatan. No, this man at least thought he was speaking the truth.

Something was off about this.

Looking off to the side, Maria could not help but notice a golden bird perching itself on a nearby building.

Chloe was nearby…

>Call upon Albert to win Maria the prize!
>Maria shall win it herself, as why would she do anything else
>Sit out of this silly game.
>Maybe there is a way to rig the game in Maria's favor *Intrigue*

>>With the participating choices, I ask for a d100 roll. Best of Three, aim low.

>>4414690
>Sit out of this silly game.
Ah, snake oil, how unnecessary.

Rolled 46 (1d100)

>>4414690
>Maybe there is a way to rig the game in Maria's favor *Intrigue*

It's been ages since we rolled for something...

>>4414690
>Sit out of this silly game.

Is the trick that we are only supposed to knock over only the ones directly on the table not any of the ones which rest upon another can and not the table itself? Or perhaps we are literally just supposed to walk over and take the cans down physically from the table, not knock them over with a tossed object?

Or is it just a simple carney trick where the cans are affixed to the table?

Rolled 79 (1d100)

>>4414690
>Maybe there is a way to rig the game in Maria's favor *Intrigue*
>>4414722
thinking about it

>>4414690
>Call upon Albert to win Maria the prize!

>>4414737
Since it’s a participation vote, roll my dude

Ah I've caught up. And i've some couple questions bros
How old are is maria supposed to be right now? Because it feels not that long ago that she got captured
What was up with those demonic notes a while back about a prince and a plot?
Didn't we have a knight? Did we just leave him at the city guard lmoa
What ever happens to solomon, how did he respond to our letter? Didn't maria already promise to marry him if he gets consolidates his power(which he already did) or something
Is ford still scheming against us? What's happening to him

Rolled 88 (1d100)

>>4414690
>>Maybe there is a way to rig the game in Maria's favor *Intrigue*
This is a silly game which means we have every right to cheat the hell out of it.

>>4414690
I personally think the bird is Chloe trying to track us but this did used to be a game, so liquid luck isn't out of the question if we can rack through our memories about the item in question's existence. The rules seem a bit relaxed here, so Chloe can just cheat via making her (There's no ball to knock them down?) damn bird grab a can?

>>4414690
>Sit out of this silly game.

>>4414690
>Sit out of this silly game.

>>4414690
>Sit out of this silly game.

Rolled 30 (1d100)

Are those cans actual food cans? That was invented in 1809, so that's a sign of isekai pasteurization. We might have to make sure we don't repeat known inventions.

This dude must have more than one vial of luck, so he could just drink one and be assured that people won't win enough for him to lose a profit.

The real question is if the guy wants an early win to sucker everyone else into playing and what the market value of luck is.


>>4414690

>Albert what's the market value of a bottle of luck?
>Study him a bit more with intrigue to determine his strategy
>Baseball Pitch because we were clearly a tomboy in our past life and a japanese tomboy cleary has to know baseball.

>>4414690
>>Sit out of this silly game.

>>4414892
Damn, what a shame this roll didn’t come early

>>4414899
Eh. They went full intrigue to cheat. I went with activating tomboy powers.
Arguably that's a different set of rolls than my one.

>>4414690
>>Call upon Albert to win Maria the prize!
Let him shine

Sitting out
>>4414700
>>4414720
>>4414853
>>4414856
>>4414880
>>4414893

Rig the game
>>4414712
>>4414729
>>4414842


Call upon Albert!
>>4414737
>>4414752
>>4414910

Do it legally
>>4414892

Hmm, based on the sheer number of votes towards the go for it, however number votes on what to do with it are split. So with that in mind, I shall choose the one extra who said do it legally and bring in Albert.

Maria wondered for a moment at the Prize, so slowly she leaned into Albert, “What would be the value of a Bottle of Luck?”

“I… can’t say.”

“Does that mean you’ve never heard of it before?”

“Only rumors, though I never thought I would see one in real life.”

Just like herself with Albert, most of the crowds were talking with one another. Indeed the Idea of simply just going up there herself was obvious, though Maria thought against it because of Chloe’s existence.

With that thought, Maria gave Albert a nudge, “Why don’t you head up there yourself? Take a gamble at such a grand prize?”

“But one gold is a bit much.”

“Hmm, good point. Here,” Maria placed into the man’s hands another coin of gold. Albert simply took it in stride however, soon walking up there with several others. Out of the two she did not expect both Elric and Lucien to walk up there for the competition. They looked at one another, as if sizing eachother for the little competition.

“Elric.” Lucien started with a corpse-like look Maria had not seen in two weeks.

“Brother…” Elric responded with what Maria guessed was determination in his heart.

“Alright, now that we have all the players, simply grab a ball and began!”

Upon his call everyone started throwing their balls, however within moments it was obvious something was wrong. Almost all the participants started to wobble slightly, sizing up their shots as if trying to strike a far away target. Many were struggling, including Albert himself, at trying to strike what should have been a simple pile of pottery.

Out of all of them though, two stood out in an instant. All of Elric’s shots were close, so much so that Maria would have sworn he would have won soon. However Lucien, who had yet to fire a shot, simply looked back into the crowd before growing a smile and throwing his ball.

In an instant all of the pottery shattered.

Maria could not help but notice the odd smile coming upon the Jester’s mouth. It was genuine, as if he had succeeded in something else entirely.

“It seems the Crown Prince, Lucien has won my silly little competition! Cheers for the victor!”

And like that everyone within the crowd gave their cheers. Though as they did, Maria noted how the Jester somehow knew the Prince’s name with only the slightest hint.

“Sorry Maria.” Albert admitted while walking his way back from the little bout, “I could not get it.”

“Its… alright.” Maria admitted as the Jester quickly covered his things up. The crowd dispersed, the sounds of Chloe congratulating Lucien on his winnings ringing in her ear.

>Try and pickpocket or bully the potion from their hands, they cannot have it!
>Go up to the Jester, something is off about him and Maria could not help but check him out.
>Ignore the things, and head on with her day

>>4415279
>Go up to the Jester, something is off about him and Maria could not help but check him out.
Let’s see what you’re hiding, mister

>>4415279
Lawdie lawd they gonna luck their way through a bunch of bullshit.

Frickin deus ex machinaing clumsily through it all

>>4415279
>Go up to the Jester, something is off about him and Maria could not help but check him out.

>>4415279
I knew he was a cheaty little bastard.
I'm thinking the demonic cult worshippers are trying to force the plot back on track.
>Go up to the Jester, something is off about him and Maria could not help but check him out.
Also:
>Send an emergency letter to the headmaster detailing concerns about this man. At bare minimum he's an unknown person that conspired to make the heir to the throne drink something unknown. It could even be a poisoning attempt At worst he could be an agent of the heretic demon worshippers trying to fix things so that her fate is not blown off course from whatever their interest in her is. The liquid luck must be confiscated, appraised, and examined for poison or nefariousness before they can be allowed to use it.

>>4415279
>>Go up to the Jester, something is off about him and Maria could not help but check him out.

>>4415288
>I'm thinking the demonic cult worshippers are trying to force the plot back on track.
Damn I almost forgot about those guys. It makes sense now that I think about it

>>4415279
>Go up to the Jester, something is off about him and Maria could not help but check him out.

Should I have said the stuff about the rigged game to give Lucien something unknown to Elric? He may be against his brother but I don't think he'd stand by and let them drink it so long as he's worried it could be a poisoning attempt like it could legitimately be.

>>4415279
>Go up to the Jester, something is off about him and Maria could not help but check him out.

>>4415279
>>Go up to the Jester, something is off about him and Maria could not help but check him out.

>>4415279
>Go up to the Jester, something is off about him and Maria could not help but check him out.

>>4415279
>Try and pickpocket or bully the potion from their hands, they cannot have it!
Yeah, I don't want them to just stumble into the chef we wanted to get out of the city.

>>4415401
By the time this is happening and they go back to investigating, the chef is already out of city bro and by a far mile

>>4415279
>Try and pickpocket or bully the potion from their hands, they cannot have it!

>>4415422
Unless they are lucky enough that he got held up.
Luck potion is not exactly weak and with her plot armor together it would be powerful.

>>4415429
Basically we need to drop them from drinking it and uncovering the scam gives us reason to confiscate the drink as an assassination attempt. If Lucien was in on it (possible) then we just get rid of it before he can speak.

>>4415279
>Go up to the Jester, something is off about him and Maria could not help but check him out.
Be cool

>>4415429
Like I said, it’s been a long time since we told the chef to go out and probably they won’t use the potion for this until tomorrow because of the ball, so I don’t see luck helping them with it

>>4415507
He'd have to be monumentally stupid to setup a stall when he knows he might get hunted down by nobles.

>>4415507
You seem to think that luck is somehow a force bound by time and will only be able to affect things once they drink it, when it isn't and could very well work retroactively.

>>4415549
Luck by the potion is bound by the time you drink it otherwise this thing is way better. But yes if they use for it they may still find something

>>4415279
>Go up to the Jester, something is off about him and Maria could not help but check him out.

>>4415594
Where is that stated?

>>4415549
The cook being there crosses past luck and into suicidal idiocy unless he stepped on a thousand year old teleport pad. Him showing up is not luck, it's blatant reality warping. Whatever Chloe finds is not going to be the cook.
She might end up immune to the traps. One of Elric's faction might end up drunk and saying too much, she might activate saint powers and be able to use her newfound political power to stop Oskar's expulsion,she could find out about the mailmen (This is actually the best case scenario if we have trouble since she might be dumb enough use that as evidence. Not gonna spell it out incase QM changes his mind, but think about the implications) we might even get drugged and confess everything (seriously, no eating or drinking at the ball) according to some master plan of theirs.

>>4415607
Or he got held up. There are more than enough reasons why his exit could be delayed enough for her to catch him and with a literal luck potion those could easily have happened.

>>4415612
No. the luck didn't start yet. If he had been held up he'd still be gone by now as it's been several days. Your obsession with a nonsensical line of thought is bordering on absurdist humour.

>>4415604
My friend, that’s how a potion should work. If you get lucky just by having it why would you even drink it in the first place ?
>>4415607
>we might even get drugged and confess everything
Do you think ford would go that far ?

>>4415644
>My friend, that’s how a potion should work. If you get lucky just by having it why would you even drink it in the first place ?
Because you need to drink it to get the effect? Are retroactive effects truly outside of your comprehension?

>>4415655
The thing is you’re talking like everything is already working up to her finding the chef (if that’s what she uses it to get lucky to) before she drinks the potion

>>4415644
Absolutely.
Half is that the Lucien Club is willing to jump to absurd conclusions to absolve Chloe of any wrongdoing.
The other side of that blind faith/love is that we've been letting him up his paranoia for fun and hypocritical justice zealots tend to have extremely unethical double standards to those they deem evil. It would be justified in his mind because we're obviously guilty of something in some way.

He also doesn't seem the type to consider or comprehend that he's acting wrong except when it comes to him breaking his no killing rule. Eg) his pushiness and refusal to consider we didn't want him there when we were injured, his mistreatment of us during the trip when we gave a legitimate reason for for Lucien to go, and his assholery after the trip. Ford simply isn't good at reflecting upon his actions or the wants of others once he's made up an opinion. Lucien is (was?) essentially a puppet for Ford this entire time because Ford controlled every aspect of Lucien's life and yet Ford's goal is the opposite. He does this while raging at us for giving Lucien even a semblance of autonomy by letting Lucien consider facts. Ford basically NEEDS us to be evil for him to be acceptable.

(Part of it probably is my dislike of him being a twat, but he's already shown multiple times that he's willing to let other people on his side be at risk of death as an unwilling sacrifice for his no killing rule. There's a saying about that involving forests and trees )

Waltz could do it too since we don't have a read on him.

>>4415655
A retroactive effect needs a logical reason to be luck in this scenario and there is no logical reason to not get his ass out of town ASAP before he gets executed.

It was actually pretty lucky that Chloe followed us because it means she couldn't follow the cook while he makes his escape after seeing them blatantly chase the knight.

The amount of reasons for him to stay even if held up are so low that I'm half convinced you think they loop back from negative into positive if you add enough negative reasons.

>>4415681
That's what retroactive means. That the effect starts before the cause happens. Luck is often just a matter of circumstances that already happened coming together to your benefit.

With this being magic it doesn't necessarily have to be limited by time.

>>4415688
>A retroactive effect needs a logical reason to be luck in this scenario and there is no logical reason to not get his ass out of town ASAP before he gets executed.
A patrol got suspicious why a chef had so much money and decided to keep him in the city until they checked where he got the money and that he didn't steal it from a noble.

Would that be enough logical reason why he could still be here?

>>4415688
>Waltz could do it too since we don't have a read on him.
Waltz is an ambitious and power-hungry on account of his blatant powergrab attempt after some girl's father died and he was in position to take that land. He's only attached to Lucien for the prestige and influence. Also apparently the "intrigue" master of Lucien's little group.

>>4415691
Nope. What kind of security do you think exists in medieval times and with how easy everyone is to bribe, why can't he just bribe his way past if the guards aren't actually stealing the money from him?
Are they doing mandatory pat downs and strip searches of every person to enter or leave? If that's true, then how TF did we smuggle in a box of potions via a normal courier? You're acting like he's leaving the border of the country. At least then he'd be stopped to check for spy papers.

>>4415697
Then Chloe just has the luck that he gets the idealistic guards and they just so happen to get informed of his newfound wealth.

>>4415697
You are acting like this wouldn't be literal magic pushing things to align with Chloe's agenda.

>>4415699
Idealistic guards that have no reason to stop him because the farmland is OUTSIDE a castle town and he's a cook.

>>4415701
Chloe already has author/creator fiat doing that and she aint managed jack shit. Luck works with the improbable, not the reasonably impossible.

>>4415702
He happened to seem suspicious to them with how freely he spent his money.

>>4415703
Author fiat that is bound by some definition of reasonable. But what is reasonable expands quite a lot when you can point to a luck potion affecting things.

>>4415704
What freely spent money? He literally grabbed the cash and left with whatever stuff he found important.
And he lives in a town of ALL the nobles. You think the nobles don't randomly toss out cash?
Are these guards or are these bandits looking for peasants to rob? Sounds like handling police corruption is one of our next reforms.

>>4415689
I know what it means, but like I said this can only occur after the luck potion is drunk.

>>4415713
Do you mean you want to prevent her from drinking it and therefore whatever the potion does doesn't matter? In which case that is the entire point I was making.

Otherwise what proof do you have that it can only happen after the potion is drunk?

I don't remember anything we learned about magic making retroactive effects impossible.

>>4415717
Boy did you pay attention to what I wrote ? the potion can work on existing effects (specially with Chloe's plot armor) but it will only influence it after it's drunk, since it's a potion. This isn't a time travel or butterfly effect dude

>>4415717
It's luck, not reality warping. Retroactively changing something that's already happened isn't luck.

luck
/lək/
Learn to pronounce
noun
noun: luck
>success or failure apparently brought by chance rather than through one's own actions.
"it was just luck that the first kick went in"
Similar:
good fortune
good luck
success
successfulness
prosperity
advantage
advantageousness
felicity
a stroke of luck
fluke
a lucky break
Opposite:
bad luck
misfortune
>chance considered as a force that causes good or bad things to happen.
"luck was with me"
Similar:
fortune
fate
destiny
lot
stars
what is written in the stars
karma
kismet
fortuity
serendipity
chance
accident
a twist of fate
contingency
circumstances
mozzle
>something regarded as bringing about or portending good or bad things.
"I don't like Friday—it's bad luck"

It does not make the impossible possible. that is the limit of luck.
Frankly in order for the luck to be as powerful as you are demanding it to be it brings up questions like asking why the jester didn't drink some and accidentally stage a perfect coup since he might be able to make his own.

>>4415725
Luck is the result, but the way it is created is open.

Would you call it luck if it turned out that the chef was held up? Yes.

So there is nothing keeping it from being possible.

And for the argument it would be too powerful luck. By which metric do you define the strength of luck?

>>4415723
Ahem, I think as I understand what you are saying. Simply put, the moment luck starts is of course a period of time, but during that time it must have been consumed to gain the effect. It was simply the luck you would have been instilled by the potion granting you the chance to drink the potion which confirms that reality.

Gotta be honest though, thats a little confusing and would not work for a Quest.

Also while I will be taking this by a differnt angel here later on, Lucien rolled a 5 while Albert rolled a 20 on trying to win.

What I'm worried is the potion that was given away. What if it's a poison? The game was rigged for Lucien to win and the world is trying to drag the narrative back on it's tracks. We need to confront Chloe and let her hold the winning potion to test it. If we proved that potion was meant to kill the prince, Chloe going to owe us something. This is also a last time gauge to see how reasonable the first prince faction is. Ford is the only one who antagonize us and the others are just victims of Ford's lies and deceits. It could also use this to remove Ford out of the Lucien side and weaken the position of the first prince.

>>4415734
Where is the roll for Lucien ? I missed it

>>4415734
>Gotta be honest though, thats a little confusing and would not work for a Quest.
It works as long as the affected parts are outside view until you as the Qm can determine which outcome would be needed.

A bit of a Schroedinger's cat thing that has been used in games before.

Anyway the question was answered.

>>4415739
Well I rolled it personally, infront of me. Don't worry though, I try my best to be impartial.

>>4415742
Or you could use the dice here.

>>4415745
Hmmm, nah. Many of them I like to keep secret, since its something I have literally done for years.

>>4415725
Shit man, that's a lot.

All you gotta say is it'd likely allow the drinker to bypass any traps we set that are based on chance of them being clumsy vs ones we can trigger directly, and even then may divert the action to do the least likely damage, such as no dye getting on them at all allowing them to get away without being ID'd

vs.

Getting people who are off doing their own thing to take new actions against their judgment. The world may bend a bit to one's actions, but it likely can't bend people directly.

Real issue is only way to pull of a trap now would for it to be as deliberate as possible with a level of human direction, such as melody being on hand to enter upon signal or something.

That or we somehow manage to remove the potion from play or get it drunk well out of range of our actions. If anything, it may let us stage harmful accidents. that said, we don't know the duration of it. Setting up a bandit capture of the potion may be ideal.

This means the goal is to learn duration and force their hand too early, or prevent them from using the item within the span of the day. Drinking the potion is a direct game over as we have not moved all pieces 100% out of play, allowing the slimmest of available threads to be pulled with minimal likely consequences.
That is of course, unless there's knowledge or something of higher value than the safety of Oskar that is in play, which luck will most likely point at instead.

Joker should be tailed by an associate if it's a worshipper acting upon the will of his demon/opposing god; if he's a opponent worshipper, they'll likely have some idea of who we are. Really need to get this crowd saturated with our people stat.

>>4415734
Was that a 5 before or after modifiers since he seems like the perfect at everything he tries cliche type of prince?

>>4415756
Before, actually. The dice demand that plot!

Go after the suspicious fuck!
>>4415281
>>4415286
>>4415288
>>4415289
>>4415292
>>4415313
>>4415336
>>4415352
>>4415483
>>4415598

Pick Pocket
>>4415401
>>4415424

Alright, there we go! Confronting the odd Jester!

“What did happen?” Maria asked while turning towards the suspicious man.

“I-it was kinda weird. I… don’t remember it very well except it was very weird.” He answered while already following Maria’s steps.

“Sorcery...” Maria said under her breath as she finally made her way up to the Jester. Said man was placing a large cloth over the stall as he was humming to himself, “Sir, I wish to talk to you.”

“Talk to me, a Noble wishes to talk to a simple jester directly?” He announced with a laugh, “My my, at least I ask for a guarantee not to have my head chopped off.”

[Conversation Success]

Maria was about to say something in response to that, but suddenly realised it was simply a ploy. Albert behind her was also starting to grow a little wary, which she felt a few other pairs of eyes upon her back.

“What kind of trickery did you use there? I have never heard of any practical illusions that can make something both farther away and move at the same time.”

“Oh, sour that your boyfriend did not win?”

“What kind of sorcery did you use?”

“Damn you are quite the spiteful girl arn’t you.”

“If you keep this up…”

“You will have me arrested?” He announced with a laugh, “You do not hold that kind of authority here, Kingslayer. I can mightily do what I want and please as long as I abide by the Church’s doctrine. And I have never heard of a simple game going against that.”

“How did you-”

“Well tally ho! Enough talking I say!” He announced while he had somehow placed all his things into a small wheelbarrow, “I hope to never see you again!”

And like that he began to run for it, Maria taking a double take as he had somehow packed up everything.

>Give chase to the eldritch fool!
>Let him go, for now, as Maria needs to report this to the Headmaster
>Just, Maria shall take a break from the bizarre for today

>>4415793
>Let him go, for now, as Maria needs to report this to the Headmaster
If he ends up being our Joker we're gonna show him where the ocean is.

>>4415793
>Let him go, for now, as Maria needs to report this to the Headmaster

>>4415793
>Let him go, for now, as Maria needs to report this to the Headmaster
what a piece of shit

Pretty sure this is the alchemist we read about.

He wants Lucien the guy that is part of his experiment to drink a vial of stuff and just so conveniently has the ability to use magic and create potions.

>>4415793
>Give chase to the eldritch fool!
If we let him get away now we're never going to see him again

>>4415793
>Give chase to the eldritch fool!

>>4415793
We either need to immediately stop either of them from drinking the potion or go to the headmaster. We have two paths here. I don't think a vote to personally snatch and break the bottle before they can drink it will work so we need an alternate route.
>Let him go, for now, as Maria needs to report this to the Headmaster.
Get a horse to rush if need be. The fact that he immediately packed up and ran before anyone could check the aftermath of the stall only makes him more suspicious.

>Get Albert to alert the guards that the luck potion might be a poisoning attempt on the prince. The jester knew Albert's name and title despite it never being given and was not good enough of an actor to hide that the prince winning was his goal. He can meet up with the headmaster to testify later too.

If we can somehow manage to sneak this in it would be good too, but i'm not expecting it.
>Tell our mailmen of this man and ask them to monitor for his attempted escape of the town so that the guards may hunt him down after the headmaster is mobilized.
Fuck this dude. I'm gonna make him become one of the first wanted posters for suspicion of poisoning the royal family. Japanese art classes should make it easy to make a portrait and spread it.
>>4415810
Possibly. His argument is flawed though since fraud is probably somewhere in the things against the church's doctrine. As for us not being the boss of him, maybe, but the Emperor sure as hell is not gonna be amused by that fucker using his son as a lab experiment.

>>4415813
He'll be back and by then his actions today will be stacked against him enough to warrant an immediate head lopping.

>>4415810
I have my suspicions because I think he maybe a cultist or something
>>4415813
I don't think that advisible since he may have magic on his side

>>4415826
Yeah, that's why I held off on the bandits kidnapping/killing his ass as he tries to escape. They don't need the fucker to randomly turn into a 6 foot tall demon and start eating them.

I think we have a good argument for a cultist . Elric didn't recognize him and Lucien showed no signs either which means he isn't part of the court. He's clearly not part of the church either.
Ruling those out means that the main way to recognize him would be through Chloe since she's quite distinctive and the headmaster has been keeping that a secret. Ergo the main reason left that we know to recognize Lucien would be to be part of the demon cultists.

There's always the low chance he conspired with Lucien to defraud dozens of nobles which (will not help Lucien's reputation at all), but that's a lower priority than possible heresy and poisoning attempts.

If he's just Valor, then he's still in trouble for human experimentation.
He also called us spiteful when we're really not unless it involves people trying to kill us. Dude's operating on the old timeline/prophecy and is gonna get fucked when he finds out he doesn't have everything rigged in his favor.


This also might give validation to Chloe's theory of interference and save Oskar but we can still invade since he's a failure and can go on a "peacekeeping" mission. Maybe something about the barbarians starting to cross into our borders and us having to invade because he's clearly an incompetent fuckup. Suspicion on the jester of being a demon cultist and behind the Oskar situation also gives reason to hold off on his blessings to make him a heretic king for us to attack.

>>4415793
>Let him go, for now, as Maria needs to report this to the Headmaster

>>4415816
>Give chase to the Eldritch fool
>Tell Albert to find Chloe and ask to not drink the potion
>Look for a horse and get the men with Maria while asking for help from the guards

>>4415793
>Let him go, for now, as Maria needs to report this to the Headmaster

>>4415793
that's it. We are gonna research enhancement potions during the holiday.


Also chasing people down is at the core of who we are. There's no way we don't have hidden allies in the crowd who won't help out, for both narrative 'strength' and backstory skill. Fuckin assassin's creed this shit.

>Tell Albert to find Chloe and ask to not drink the potion
>Tell Elric to alert the headmaster "to alert our guardians"
>Tell Elizabeth to go to the post office and send a paper with a big X in the center, the name Lex, and this location at the bottom.
>Give chase to the Eldritch fool


We should be able to give those commands fast enough before we hightail the fuck after him. Even if Elric and Liza don't catch our speech, Albert will certainly not let us down and reiterate it to them. Both because of narrative and Albert's good with words.

I doubt this guy really knows just how connected we are. Maybe we can do a bandit whistle while chasing him to get help with any of our men in the crowd.

>>4416071
You’re too optimistic

>>4416087
well "Headmaster and stop Lucien" is enough for one
and
"Send a large X to lex at the post" works for the other.
From there it's trust in Albert to do us proud.

Beyond that, we runnin.

Educate the Clergy
>>4415796
>>4415800
>>4415805
>>4415817
>>4415995
>>4416057

Give chase!
>>4415813
>>4415816
>>4416000

Alright, educate the Clergy. Also, do you guys really think Lucien would listen to you?

>>4416107
Probably not, but we want it on the record he was warned while we chased a dude and got the church running after a jester.

DESU VULT

>>4415826
Definitely has magic on his side.
But we have a lot of surprises he isn't expecting if he's following the will of the narrative.

>>4416107
Nope, that's why I said for Albert or the guards to stop him (assumed Elrik was out of range).
Either way it's still important to try and not get him poisoned to death in what should look like a blatant assasination attempt to anyone we explain it to. We aren't that far gone and don't personally hate him for being an asshole yet.

>>4416107
>>4416071
you didn't add mine sempai :c